§12801. Declaration of purpose

The Legislature finds that various species of fish or wildlife have been and are in danger of being rendered extinct within the State of Maine, and that these species are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational and scientific value to the people of the State. The Legislature, therefore, declares that it is the policy of the State to conserve, by according such protection as is necessary to maintain and enhance their numbers, all species of fish or wildlife found in the State, as well as the ecosystems upon which they depend.

This subchapter and chapter 631 are established to carry out the purposes of this section.

Sec. 6. 12 MRSA §12803, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 414, Pt. A, §2 and affected by Pt. D, §7, is repealed and the following enacted in its place:

3.__Legislative authority.__The Legislature, as sole authority, shall designate a species as a state endangered or state threatened species.__The list of state endangered or state threatened species by common name, scientific name and status is as follows:

A.__Least tern, Sterna albifrons, endangered;

B.__Golden eagle, Aquila chrysaetos, endangered;

C.__Piping plover, Charadrius melodus, endangered;

D.__Sedge wren, Cistothorus platenis, endangered;

E.__Grasshopper sparrow, Ammodramus savannarum, endangered;

F.__Box turtle, Terrapene carolina, endangered;

G.__Black racer, Coluber constrictor, endangered;

H.__Roseate tern, Sterna dougallii, endangered;

I.__Northern bog lemming, Synaptomys borealis, threatened;

J.__Blanding's turtle, Emydoidea blandingii, endangered;

K.__Black tern, Chlidonias niger, endangered;